Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death!

As part of the 5th Utah Social Studies Curriculum I get to teach my students all about US History...I LOVE IT!!! Currently we are studying the American Revolution. Well last week in order to help my students understand how the colonists would have felt being taxed by Britain I became Queen Wells (fitting I know!) I broke my class into 3 sections the Southern, Middle, and New England Colonies. Then I created a governor for each colony and my own very loyal Parliament. I explained to my students that as Queen I only talk to my parliament, so if they have a question or concern they need to talk to their governors who will relay the message to the Parliament who will then tell me. I will then answer the Parliament who will answer the governor who will then answer you.

Then, you guessed it, I started taxing my students. First, it started out with a paper and pencil tax (you know since public schools are poor and the economy sucks). No worries they pay with fake money they earn for things like turning in their homework, getting 100% on something, or following directions and they can spend in our classroom store. Even though is basically Monopoly money they were still very upset when I took it. So my governors collect the taxes and then I pay Parliament from the tax money and they pass a little on down to the governors for doing all the hard work. After all I want my Parliament to be happy and continue serving me.


The next day I had Parliament create a tax and since they get a cut of the profit it took no time at all for them create a few. We added on the chair tax (you don't pay it you have to stand), the recess tax, and the bathroom tax. Well as you can imagine the rest of the class was not soo happy about this. In fact there were a few kids who refused to pay the taxes until I threaten to send them to in-school detention. At recess the governors came in complaining that they were being chased my girls who were complaining about taxes. I simply said talk to Parliament and sent them back outside. Haha their faces were priceless!


Tax Day #3 I walked into class about 5 minutes after the bell wearing a tiara and demanded that whenever a student address me they must first say "All Hail Queen Wells!" if they didn't then they would be fined. At first everyone just laughed but soon kids were being fined and it wasn't so funny. I even had one girl in my class tell me that I was getting greedy and that if I stayed that way soon I wouldn't have any friends. It was also on Day 3 that I found my first petition. Someone had left it out on their desk so when my students got back from lunch I read off the names of the people who had signed it and fined them $50 for treason!! That is when the uproar started! So to settle my class down I made them all copy the definition of treason out of the dictionary for every treasonous word they spoke. Let's put it this way there was no more complaining! :O) (I love being a mean teacher!) Well the rest of my class was doing then my Parliament was getting paid and dancing around the room singing "I'm rich!!! I'm rich!!! I have your money!!! And it is soo funny cause I'm rich!!!! I love taxes!!! We need more taxes!!!!" Needless to say my class was a little divided at recess that afternoon. Some colonists were even payed off by Parliament to spy and make sure no more petitions were sent out. Oh, and Parliament even made me a pillow of paper to store my tiara on and a paper bracelet. Its actually really pretty!


Tax Day #4 Some of my students snuck into the classroom before the first bell rang (I was making copies for the day) and covered my room in Protest Posters. When Parliament saw this they created a new tax. $1 for every treasonous word!! Some of my kids owed like $80! If you couldn't pay your taxes or you refused to pay your taxes you went to jail. Jail was standing at the back of the room copying out of the dictionary, losing recess, no talking, and not being able to participate in class at all (which meant some of them got zeros). Harsh I guess but hey they could have paid their taxes and everything would have been hunky dory. It was also on this day that my class learned about metaphors and wrote metaphor poems. They got to choose their topics. Here are some of the best ones. It was soooo hard to keep a straight stern looking face while they shared with the class!


TAXES (This girl is sooo quiet and never does anything wrong. She was sooo scared to read it in front of the class. She even came up and said sorry afterwards!)

Taxes are a venus fly trap snatching up money like flies.
Taxes are a lion eating up all our Auction Buck every day like meat.
Taxes are a trombone loud so people will know that its time to pay taxes.
Taxes are scissors cutting up any money we get.
Taxes are a governor, greedy for more.

TAXES

Taxes are a venus fly trap killing all my money.
Taxes are a venemous snake ready to strike with poison at any second.
Taxes are drums letting everyone know they are here.
Taxes are a hammer nailing themselves into my side.
Taxes are my big brother learning to play the trumpet, loud and annoying!

Here is my personal favorite!!

QUEEN WELLS

Queen Wells is rose, thorny and mean!
Queen Wells is lion devouring all my money.
Queen Wells is nails on a chalkboard.
Queen Wells is an out of tune guitar, saying more taxes more taxes!
Queen Wells is stinky person who takes money from people who need it!
I HATE QUEEN WELLS!


Yes, after the poems I knew I was getting my point across but I really wanted my students to rebel and stand up for themselves. It didn't take long. Parliament created more taxes and got more money from me. Yes, they were singing my praises. During recess that day the rest of my class signed a Declaration of Independence (pictured below). Declaring themselves free from me! I found it and then talked to my class. I told them if the didn't cross their name off the list I would take away the rest of their money. Their reply was "Go ahead you'd take it in taxes anyhow!" I threaten with sending them to the principal and lots of homework but still no one would fall so finally we talked about taxes and how they felt about them and they got all their Auction Bucks plus some back. Parliament was sad it ended but the rest of the class (once they had their money back) thought it was soo cool and that it was the best way to learn about the colonies. haha Anyway I thought you might enjoy our classroom rebellion!

Communication

DISCLAIMER: This post is part rant/part sarcasm/part venting. It was quite therapeutic for me to write so take it with a grain of salt. Oh and enjoy the very effective means of communication demonstrated by the oh so genius Office!!!


People say that 90% of the communication between people happens without words. It is done through actions, looks, body stance, and telepathic messages. I guess that last one includes the phrase "if looks could kill" since behind those evil eyes a message is being sent from one brain to another..."retreat or be killed!!!"

Well, today I had an interesting experience with communication or the lack thereof. Technology has provided us with some very wonderful things, TV on the Internet (which can I just add is like the greatest thing since sliced bread!!), the ipod, the microwave, digital cameras, movies (with sound and color), and of coarse for all the sports fans out there...instant replay! But while all these things are wonderful technology has also confused and mangled communication. When everything is sent digitally now through Facebook, text messaging, instant messaging, and yes, even blogging, it is hard to truly understand what someone is saying. The same phrases said in different tones and inflections of the voice can mean completely different things. We are only getting 10% of what the person is really trying to say! Something that is meant to be sarcastic is suddenly rude and insensitive. Something meant to be a joke is harsh and taken seriously.



As a teacher I watch my students write and insert text language (2 for the word to, n for in, lol, btw for by the way). That cannot be healthy. I have always had very little patience and so snail mail as it is now called is not exactly my favorite thing, however, nothing beats getting a letter that you can physically hold in the mailbox! Nothing beats ripping open the top of that letter and seeing actual handwritten words! It is soo personal and wonderful! It just makes you feel special. I personally think that IRS would get a lot less slack if they would start handwriting their letters and envelopes when auditing people.

We as a society are loosing the art of letter writing and of patience. Everything we do now a days is to satisfy our need for instant gratification! All of our problems need to be solved in one 60 min time slot just like they are on TV. Everything is instant and or prepared in just minutes! Whatever happened to going with the flow and looking at the roses. No instead we are too busy stomping over them while we text the person next to us.



Ok I'm off my soap box and back to the original point of this post. Today I received an email in response to an email that I had sent where something I had said was taken completely out of context and basically just turned into this whole big mess. Now normally I could just call or text the person and clear it all up but in this unique case the person I need to talk to is in Iraq making communication a little harder because it is spread out over 6,000 miles. Oh the joys of my single life! haha Nothing can be simple it all has to be confusing and difficult! Sooooo freaking frustrating.

Ok enough ranting. I'm going to do something I should have done and hour and a half ago...go to bed. I hope you got some food for thought and that the next time you send a text or get offended by someone over technological communication you will stop, breath, and calming talk to them about it.

"YOUR VOICE WAS THE SOUNDTRACK OF MY SUMMER"

IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here's how it works:
1. Open your music library.
2. Put it on shuffle.
3. Press play.
4. For every question, type the song that's playing.
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button.
6. Don't lie and try to pretend you're cool...


C's MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK

Opening Credits: "Leaving On Your Mind" LeAnn Rimes (Wow that is disappointing!)

Waking Up: "I'm a Believer" -Smashmouth

First Day of School: "Again I go Unnoticed" -Dashboard Confessional

Falling in Love: "Kiss Me" -Sixpence None the Richer (well that worked out nicely!)

Fight Song: "Numb/Encore" -Jay-Z and Linkin Park

Breaking Up: "St. Patrick's Day" -John Mayer

Life: "Hard to Love You"- The Wreckers

Mental Breakdown: "I Cross My Heart" -George Strait (HAHAHA yeah I'm not sure how this song works but maybe with some great editing....who knows!)

Driving: "My Town" -Montgomery Gentry

Flashbacks: "Another Hole In the Head" -Nickelback

Getting Back Together: "I Don't Want To" -Ashley Monroe with Ronnie Dunn (apparently I don't want to get back together)

Wedding: "I Don't Wanna Spend One More Christmas Without You" -Nsync (maybe I am doomed to do distance relationships for the rest of my life!)

Birth of a Child: "Defying Gravity"- Kristen Chenoweth,Idina Menzel WICKED Soundtrack (maybe i'll give birth on an airplane!)

Final Battle: "Jammin"- Bob Marley (OK THIS TOTALLY DOESN'T FIT!)

Death Scene: "Leaving Town Alive"- Bethany Joy Galeotti (but i don't leave town alive??)

Funeral Song: "To the Beat of Our Noisy Hearts" -Matt Nathanson

End Credits: "Strong Anything" -Katrina Elam

Well all I can say is that there better be some amazing editing with this movie cause half of these songs totally don't fit!

Politics

So I teach 5th grade. Over the last 2 months we have been learning all about the 3 branches of government and monitoring the election. I know this is a little late being posted (what can i say life happens and when it does i don't have time to blog) but I thought I would share with you some of the insights these 10 year olds had on our beautiful political system.

After watching the 2nd Presidential Debate

Student: Teacher, I have decided that politics turns men into 3 year olds. Me and my brother don't fight as much as McCain and Obama fight...and that's alot!!

Student: So I think that my mom should have run that debate. That way they couldn't be mean to each other. She would have grounded them and sent them to their rooms.

Student: I don't think either of them should be our next president. They aren't very nice!

Student: Why did McCain keep calling everyone his friends? I don't know him. I'm not his friend.


After Obama had won:

Student: TEACHER! TEACHER! Obama is going to paint the White House black!! Its all over the news! Its historic! The White House is going to be black!!!!
Teacher: No sweetheart. Obama IS black. He IS African American. He IS NOT going to paint the White House black. He is black. Its historic because he is our first black president!
Student: OOHHH. (sigh of relief) I didn't want a Black House.

Student: Why would you want to be president anyway? Its seems like a lot of work and someone always doesn't like you! I wouldn't want my dad to be president.




My thoughts on this historic election.

First, I would like to say good luck to President-Elect Obama! You definitely have your work cut out for you! It is not a job I would want. I am honored that less than 60 years after Rosa Park sat at the front of a bus we as a nation can celebrate the first African American President. I remember during high school having to interview people who were older than me about national events that had defined their lives (JFK Assassination, Pearl Harbor, Vietnam etc.) and can't help but feel like someday someone will ask me about what it was like to watch TV and see the first black president announced! How exciting it is to watch history happen. Whether or not change is coming during the next 4 years, I think we can all agree, change has happened!

Our country has worked through difficult times full of hate, fear, and misunderstanding. We, as a nation, have entered into a new ear where the immortal words "All Men are Created Equal" truly mean that any man, women (Palin as VP Candidate), or child, no matter their station, culture, or skin tone, really can be whatever they want to be. This election brought hope to me. So many people got involved and watched the debates, researched the issues, and celebrated the democratic system. There was the highest voter turn out in 40 years! As my generation enters the work force and begins to climb the ladder of success and leadership I hope we will take this lesson to heart. "Change" and "hope" both beautiful messages I want my 26 bright students to believe in, can unite people in a way that no iron fist can. They are the message of a bright future no matter how dark the forest around is now. They are a TRULY AMERICAN MESSAGE! Decide who you are and what you want to be, then chase your dreams! No one can stop you!


P.S. This political cartoon I just thought was funny! SNL did a great job this election! Now that the election is over what are they going to make fun of??